Technical Abstract:
Potatoes are the most eaten vegetable, with the average American consuming about 140 pounds a year. Given this high consumption, potatoes have considerable potential to be a source of dietary phytonutrients. Developing and positioning potato as a “functional food,” (i.e., a food that provides health benefits beyond that of meeting basic nutritional needs) could create new marketing opportunities amongst consumers who base their buying decisions upon the perceived nutritional value of a food. In this report we summarize our analysis of numerous potato varieties for phytochemicals, particularly phenolic compounds, that may be desirable in the diet and are potential targets to increase in future variety development.